With Electric Dream (60" x 40") arriving at the gallery this week I thought I'd share a few in-progress shots of the painting and a little narration. . .

You can see my repositioning of the size and placement of the main figures early on. I knew I wanted something happening at the bottom of the painting to give these central figures a dominant scale, but I hadn't decide what that would be.

Everything pivots around this figure and I needed to establish her first, although we don't see who she is.

The upper part is developing so now I stop to incorporate the lower section and sketch out the elements. Referencing Egyptian hieroglyphics, where the size of the king or queen tower above their subjects to denote importance, I scale down the crowd and building-like structures.

I'm always considering how the ground, the bright colors on the canvas, are interacting with the figurative elements I'm developing on top. In person this dynamic occurs much more than what is seen here. The negation and reestablishment of these bright colors was a constant conversation I had with the painting.

I'm always considering how the ground, the bright colors on the canvas, are interacting with the figurative elements I'm developing on top. In person this dynamic occurs much more than what is seen here. The negation and reestablishment of these bright colors was a constant conversation I had
with the painting.

Final Painting: note the two small girls in the bottom left corner that brought the painting together. It would fall apart with them . . . they act like little anchors on a big ship.

There are many ways to read the painting, perhaps a direct literal translation might not be the most engrossing. Much like recalling a dream upon waking, we thread a narrative through the imagery but there are many gaps that need to be filled in, in order for any type of coherence to happen. Maybe these elements as presented, which are a quilted patchwork of imagery, didn't all unfold in this fashion? A broad fragment of a narrative is being uncovered but we might not know what is entirely happening or what is going on. As with many aspects of our lives these events or experiences can be revealed and concealed at the same time, and in the moment the outcome may not be clear.

Embodied cognition is the theory that thoughts, feelings, and behaviors are grounded in bodily interaction with an environment and provides the fuel to concretize a memory. The key word being environment, a term that has much flexibility. It could mean an entire room, or a mere detail on the wall, or even a color. They can all function to instill a memory, creating a guidepost to allow us to access when needed. It is these stories we tell ourselves that are the founding of our identity.

(I've tried to sum up a lot. It is a complex line of inquiry with many slippery edges. So, if it's unclear I apologize. If that's the case, reach out and let me know -> joshbflint@gmail.com. Or contact the gallery and they can put us in touch.)